Central Intelligence Agency Director Mike Pompeo testifies before the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S. May 11, 2017. (Photo: Reuters)
President Donald Trump confirmed that Mike Pompeo met with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un last weekend. The secret meeting aimed to determine whether the diplomatic olive branch extended to Pyongyang resulted in denuclearization talks.
“Mike Pompeo met with Kim Jong Un in North Korea last week. Meeting went very smoothly and a good relationship was formed. Details of Summit are being worked out now. Denuclearization will be a great thing for World, but also for North Korea!”
Mike Pompeo met with Kim Jong Un in North Korea last week. Meeting went very smoothly and a good relationship was formed. Details of Summit are being worked out now. Denuclearization will be a great thing for World, but also for North Korea!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 18, 2018
Mr. Pompeo, who currently heads up the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), was nominated by President Trump to replace Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State. Democrats have also tried to hold up his confirmation.
At the White House Tuesday, President Trump disclosed the U.S. and North Korea were holding direct talks at “extremely high levels” ahead of a possible summit. He gave some indication that a diplomatic channel was quietly making progress.
“We have had talks on the highest level, and it’s going very well,” he told reporters. “We’ll see what happens.”
The Washington Post first reported the meeting and claimed it took place over Easter weekend — just over two weeks ago, shortly after Mr. Pompeo was nominated for secretary of state. The South Koreans first conveyed the offer from their neighbor in the North in March.
If the summit is held, it would be the first-ever between the U.S. and North Korea after more than six decades of hostility. The North and South remain in a technical state of war. The 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty.
